Home Storage
At the British Association of Removers we acknowledge that moving home can be a stressful time.
For most people a home move means packing up their worldly possessions at the property they’re leaving, having all those goods moved to a new property and then unpacking them*. But there are a number of reasons you may not be able to move directly into your new home, and that might mean that you need to put some or all of your belongings, into storage.
* The move itself might be the culmination of weeks, months or even years of an exhausting process. The moving day itself can be fraught with everything happening at once, with you the home mover at the mercy of solicitors, banks and agents doing everything on time. This is the day you’ll be relieved you chose a professional removal company for your move.
Why home movers need to store
People moving home might need storage for any number of reasons, the most common ones being:
- Moving into temporary accommodation. This might be because they are waiting to move into their new home or, they haven’t yet found somewhere to buy but didn’t want to lose the buyer of their property and are renting short-term.
- Temporarily relocating for work. Employees often need to work elsewhere for a time. Often called a secondment (or posting), it happens when an employee is temporarily assigned to work elsewhere, for another organisation or a different part of their employer’s business. The locating person may decide to rent out their empty property and move some or all of their belongings into store, or for security reasons.
- Downsizing. Moving to a smaller home happens for many reasons. It might be that the children have left home for good, because the home needs too much upkeep, or changes in the homeowner’s circumstances make a downsize necessary. Whatever the reason a smaller property will either mean letting things go or using some form of storage.
Decluttering
Even if you aren’t moving home there often comes a time when a home needs a sort out, some things need to go and decluttering is required. Decluttering isn’t just about throwing items away – it’s about looking for ways to organise and store those things you want to keep but don’t want taking up valuable space up your home the whole time. Once any ‘rubbish’ has been removed and things you no longer use donated to charity, given away or sold you are left with the things you want to keep. Decluttering helps free up space for living and can be good for mindfulness. Do it room by room and if there are things you still want to keep that can’t easily be put away and haven’t been used in 90 days (and won’t be used in the next 90 days), considering putting them into storage.
Choosing the right storage option
There are two main options for household storage. Most people will be aware of self storage, but not everyone is aware of containerised storage which might be more appropriate, more cost-effective and, is offered by the majority of removal companies.
Containerised storage
Containerised storage involves storing items in large, strong, purpose-built wooden ‘boxes’. They vary in size but a standard warehouse container holds 250 cubic feet, and measures approximately 5 feet wide, 7 feet deep and 8 feet high. The containers are designed to be durable, weather-resistant, and stackable, making them ideal for storage purposes.
Containerised storage is a simpler storage solution for people moving home for several reasons.
- Firstly, using a mover that also has a storage facility (which most do) means that you have just the one company as a point of contact. They will know in advance which of your belongings are going into store they can securely pack these directly into the container(s) on the removal van and take it directly into store in the warehouse; with no chance of anything getting lost in transit
- Secondly, removal teams are trained professionals who will pack your goods quickly, efficiently and most importantly safely, so that nothing is damaged or crushed whilst in storage
- Thirdly you don’t need to hire a van, nor ask friends to help you carry out the backbreaking task of moving goods into self-store
- Warehouses are a secure environment. Customer access is minimal and they are always accompanied by a member of staff
- Container storage is almost always cheaper than self-storage
- It is a flexible solution. If you need additional storage this is easy to do, simply tell your mover what needs storing and they will take the required items into store with minimal fuss and paperwork.
- Finally, when you need your goods back contact your mover and they will simply deliver and unload the container(s) where needed. Each container can be itemised so you can choose which ones to have returned; your mover may also offer individual item delivery as a premium service.
